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Punch Out!! 
Virtual Console Reviews Nintendo Entertainment System
Written by Dave   
Saturday, 21 April 2007
Editor's rating
3.6
out of 5
 
     
Published By: Nintendo
Players: 1
Genre: Sports
Wii Points: 500
As young boxer Little Mac, you have a once-in-a-lifetime chance to battle the big guys of the World Video Boxing Association circuit! Take them on one by one, starting with the skinny Glass Joe. Battle up through King Hippo and all the way to the WVBA Champion himself. Use your best jabs, hooks, and power uppercuts to knock out your opponents, but pay attention to subtle changes in their body position to dodge jaw-breaking blows! With great graphics, addictive action, and a touch of humor, this game will keep you entertained for hours!

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful

Overall rating (weighted)
3.6
Presentation
3.0
Graphics
4.0
Sound
3.0
Gameplay
4.0
Emulation
4.0
Punch Out!! is one of the Nintendo Entertainment System's most legendary titles. It was the first game I played when I received my NES on Christmas Day 1987, and that experience will forever be engraved in my memory. The Punch Out!! I played back in 1987 is identical to the Virtual Console re-release, except for one glaring difference...Mike Tyson has been removed from the game.

Many of you may not remember this, but Punch Out!! was originally released as “Mike Tyson's Punch Out!!”. Not only was Mike Tyson's name in the title, he was also included in the game as Little Mac's final opponent. In 1990, Nintendo removed Mike Tyson from the game and replaced him with a fictitious contender named “Mr. Dream”. Many have theorized over the years that Mike Tyson was removed from the game due to his rape conviction, however it is now known that he was removed due to a contract dispute, and because he had just lost to Buster Douglas.

Despite that difference, Punch Out!! is just as great as it was 20 years ago. The graphics are fantastic for an 8-bit game, with nicely drawn cartoon-like characters, rich colors, large sprites, and detailed animation. Each character in the game has his own unique look and personality.

Punch Out!!'s sound is well done. Most of the contenders have their very own intro music, and the game's sound effects are quite good and blend in with the game play.

The game play in Punch Out!! is simple, and fun. The “A” and “B” buttons act as Little Mac's left and right arms, allowing you to throw different punch combinations. When you press up on the control pad and press “A” or “B” Little Mac will do an uppercut. You can also dodge your opponents punches by pressing the control pad left or right at the correct moment. Once you have enough star points, you can launch a devastating super uppercut by pressing the “start” button (+ button on the Wiimote).

The key to defeating each opponent is learning their weaknesses, and figuring out how to avoid their special maneuver. The difficulty increases as Little Mac advances through the different circuits.

As you can probably tell, Punch Out!! is one of my favorite NES games. It is simple to learn, yet extremely challenging. I encourage everyone to download this for their VC collection, it is well worth it.
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